


Sunset Shivers

by BirinBoom



Category: Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)
Genre: Dating, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Other, Romance, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-13 22:35:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29409189
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BirinBoom/pseuds/BirinBoom
Summary: Your Valentine’s Day is about to go horribly wrong when you’re suddenly dumped. Fed up with everything, you decide to go on an impromptu date with a stranger. But a voice in the back of your head can’t help but make you wonder if his intentions are completely innocent.
Relationships: Axel (Kingdom Hearts)/Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 5





	Sunset Shivers

You were starting to regret picking your outfit for style rather than warmth. A sudden gust of chilly February wind left you shivering. The bench you were sitting on had caused your legs to grow numb, stone edge digging into your skin. You were supposed to meet your date here, in front of the train station; you were supposed to meet an hour and a half ago.

Multiple texts and phone calls had yielded you nothing, your date hadn’t responded to any of it. Letting your eyes glide over all the happy couples milling about the station square, your eyebrows knitted together. You had even confirmed yesterday that the two of you were supposed to meet in front of _this_ station, so you were sure there hadn’t been any miscommunication. What was going on?

Checking your messages one more time, you noticed something odd: while most of the messages you had sent today had been left on read, the last few had never been delivered. You decided to give it one final try and called again. It went straight to voicemail. You looked back down on your phone, having half a mind to hurl it into the crowd. Not only was your date a no-show but had apparently also decided to block you. On Valentine’s Day of all days.

Sighing deeply, you mentally prepared yourself for the lonely walk back home. There was no point in waiting anymore. Time to swing by one of the nearby shops and buy yourself a treat to make your bad mood go away.

Just then, an unfamiliar man sat down next to you. Leaning back, he placed his hands behind his head and looked at you.

“Hey.”

Turning, you eyed the stranger who returned your gaze evenly. Before you could respond he continued, “I noticed that you’ve been here a while. Alone. Have your plans been cancelled?”

 _Rub it in, why don’t you,_ you thought to yourself. As for the man, you gave him a curt nod, not in the mood to be made the butt of a mean joke.

“Yeah, mine, too,” he said, turning his head again to stare up at the clouds.

You looked at him again, _really_ looked at him. He was tall, lean, handsome. His bright red hair lit up the drab, gloomy day like an open flame. Black skinny jeans clung to his legs like they were painted on. A dress shirt with the first few buttons undone and its sleeves rolled up, a jacket casually draped over his lap. All together, he looked like the type some people would drool over. What kind of rotten personality did he have for someone to stand him up? Then again, what kind of rotten personality had _you_ displayed since your date had not even deemed you worthy of a reply…

Green eyes found yours once more, and a small smile played on his lips when he noticed you looking at him. Turning back to you, he said, “So, what’s the excuse? Train outta commission, suddenly had to work late, family emergency?”

“There wasn’t an excuse,” you grit out. “I just got ghosted. Blocked, too.”

He winced. “Ouch!”

“And you?” you asked in an attempt to keep the conversation going. It was nice to finally have _someone_ to talk to, even if it was a complete stranger.

“Me? I’m apparently an overbearin’ ass who doesn’t deserve a date. At least that’s what I was told before I got dumped. All ‘cuz I offered to buy some ice cream. I know it’s a bit chilly out and all, but I just don’t understand the people who claim that you can’t eat ice cream during cold weather.” Turning to look at you, as if to get your approval, he added, “Right?”

You shrugged. “To each their own. Though not everybody likes ice cream.”

He scoffed. “I mean, if it was a case of not _wantin_ ’ ice cream, a simple ‘no thanks’ woulda sufficed! No need to call me names and leave!”

With a deep, frustrated groan, he looked back up at the sky, throwing his long legs out in front of him. Then he spoke up again.

“So… I have a reservation for two at this little restaurant down the street. It’s about to go to waste ‘cuz I don’t wanna be the type to go by myself on Valentine’s, can’t stand all those pityin’ looks people give ya. Wanna come? It’s my treat.”

His offer made you pause, a little, nagging voice springing forth in the back of your mind. You couldn’t quite tell if it was just because of your sour mood from being stood up and ghosted, but… wasn’t it awfully convenient that you’d both been dumped, and that this guy just happened to have dinner reservations? Who would dump someone just because they’re offered ice cream, anyway? And why had he singled you out?

Whatever, it didn’t matter. If he turned out to be a jerk hoping for a one-night stand, you could always just leave after dinner. You wouldn’t owe him anything, not even if he paid for your meal. And didn’t you deserve to get just a tiny bit spoiled after what happened today? Yeah, letting him take you out for dinner couldn’t hurt.

Turning your attention back to him, you smiled. “I try to make it a habit of not going out with men whose name I don’t know.”

Straightening back up, the man sent you a brilliant grin. “Well, let’s change that. The name’s Axel. Got it memorized?” He tapped his temple with an index finger before extending his hand to you.

You let out a much needed burst of giggles at his strange gesture, which only caused Axel’s grin to grow wider. The brightness of his smile burned away the last few wisps of dark clouds from your mind. You grabbed his outstretched hand, telling him your name. Though, much to your surprise, rather than giving it the expected shake, he got to his feet, flinging the jacket over his shoulder and pulling you up with him.

“Let’s go, I’m starvin’!”

⁂

You put down your napkin with a happy hum. Dinner had been just what you needed; the atmosphere of the small restaurant was cosy and intimate, the food delicious, and the conversation was flowing easily. Axel had been nothing but charming, listening intently when you spoke and peppering his replies with sweet compliments. You were fully enjoying his attention, though the nagging voice kept whispering that he didn’t actually mean what he said.

All in all, the evening had been interesting and you didn’t want it to end just yet. _Hmm_. How about the park a couple of blocks away? Maybe a walk would be something nice to do while you figured out if you wanted the night to carry on even further.

You cleared your throat, making Axel look at you. “So, do you, uh, wanna get out of here and maybe go for a walk?”

Axel’s eyes lit up as a wide grin spread across his face. “Sure!”

Being back outside made you feel like you’d walked into a freezer. If the air had been chilly earlier, it was now downright frigid. The clouds had dissipated, showing off a few of the brightest stars twinkling above, the moon barely peeking over the horizon.

Axel sent you a brief glance as you rubbed your hands together. “You got the sunset shivers?”

“The _what_?”

“Y’know, the chill that sometimes comes right after sundown. I call it the sunset shivers. Here.”

He handed you the jacket he had once again flung over his shoulder. It was a nice touch, you thought, bringing a jacket just so he could lend it to his date. He definitely came prepared. You couldn’t help but wonder how many times he’d done this before. It didn’t matter, you decided - you were just happy about the extra warmth the jacket brought. That, and it smelled nice.

You felt his fingers brush over the back of your hand before he slowly interlaced them with yours. His skin was blazing hot, even in the cold evening.

And again, that nagging thought made its presence known, claiming that he was overstepping an unspoken boundary. You brushed it off. It didn’t matter, as long as you enjoyed having his warm hand in yours. And if he suggested anything you didn’t want to do, you’d just hand the jacket back to him and leave.

“Is this alright?” Axel asked, his voice tinged with what funnily enough sounded like nervousness.

Instead of answering his question, you blurted out, “How are you so warm?”

The question earned you a bout of laughter. “Dunno,” he replied in between chuckles, “I always just run really hot. I’m like a husky, I can be outside in a snowstorm wearin’ only a t-shirt and be perfectly happy.” Brushing a hand through his long hair, he continued, “I shed like a husky, too.”

“I’m sure you do!” you said, joining in on the laughter.

You stopped in front of a pond, watching as rays of moonlight bathed the still water. The trees drowned out the sounds of any nearby traffic. The only thing you could hear was soft, distant voices of a few other couples walking around close by.

Taking a deep inhale of the cold night air, you broke the silence, “Thank you for taking me out tonight. I really appreciate not being left to wallow in my bad mood.”

Axel chuckled. “Yeah, I kinda thought that you might need it.”

“What do you mean?”

“Oh, just that my friend keeps claimin’ that I have a habit of ‘picking up stray puppies’ as he calls it. I apparently tend to zone in on people who need company.”

You felt yourself deflate a bit. “So you take people on impromptu dates often?”

“Not dates, no. I might offer them a drink or a bite to eat, or I just sit and listen to them,” Gently squeezing your hand, he added, “This is the only impromptu date I’ve ever been on, so don’t think that I’d go this far for just anybody.”

Trying to hide your amused smile, you said, “Why me?”

“Dunno, there’s just somethin’ about you. I can’t really deny that I’m attracted to you.”

Your nagging voice rolled its non-existent eyes. _‘There’s just something about you.’ Suuure, let’s go with that._

Ignoring it, you asked, “So, you have a habit of zoning in on people who need company?”

Axel was silent for a moment before he replied, “Yeah… that’s how I met my kids.”

You abruptly turned to face him, pulling your hand from his, the nagging voice blaring klaxons in your head. “You have _kids_? Why didn’t you mention that sooner?”

Letting out a heavy sigh, Axel turned as well, his eyes meeting yours. “Because I… Well, I hadn’t originally planned on talkin’ about that tonight, ‘cuz it’s kinda complicated. But this date is goin’ so well I thought I oughta bring it up… Shit, how do I even explain it so it makes sense?”

Scratching the back of his head, he then held up a finger. “First things first: they are _not_ my kids, at least not biologically, I don’t have _any_ kids. I’m more like a big brother to them. Their parents are kinda absent, so I sorta took them under my wing. Buy them ice cream, give them someone to talk to, tryin’ to keep them outta too much trouble, things like that.” Giving you a pleading look, he added, “Does that make any sense?”

You shrugged, wrapping your arms around yourself. “I guess.”

“Look…” Axel fished his phone out of his pocket, fiddling with it for a moment before handing it to you. A picture of him along with four teenagers was on the screen, all of them smiling happily. Below was a date. The picture was taken only a few months ago.

“See?” he said. “I’m not lying.”

You looked at the picture again. None of the kids looked like Axel. And judging from their approximate ages, he would have been extremely young to have a kid as old as them. Not out of the realm of possibility, but also pretty unlikely.

“I know it’s kinda strange and a lot to take in,” Axel said, “but it’s all completely innocent. I had a rough childhood, myself, and coulda used someone to look out for me. I’m tryin’ to be that kind of person for them. I’ve known them for a few years by now, and we’ve been through some shitty times together, so I kinda started thinkin’ about them as _my_ kids. They’re the closest thing I have to a family.”

You looked back down at the picture. The whole story was kind of endearing, though you still didn’t fully trust that it was true. Then again, why else would he have a picture of himself with four teenagers?

Without thinking, you swiped to the next picture. One of the girls blowing out the candles of what must be her birthday cake. The rest of the kids, plus three more, were cheering around her. The next picture was of a blue haired man with frosting on his nose and a very peeved look on his face.

“That’s Isa,” Axel explained. “Me and him go way back. Kairi, the redheaded one, put frosting on his nose. He was so mad, I’m still amazed that he let me take a picture of him.”

Gently pulling the phone from your hands, Axel continued flipping through the pictures, explaining who the other kids were and what was going on. You learned that the blonde birthday-girl was Naminé. The blonde boy using a stick to bounce a ball around was Roxas. The blackhaired girl who held up a snail shell with a giant smile on her face was Xion. The last three were their friends from the local school.

While Axel continued flipping through his camera roll, you stole a glance at his face. His smile was soft, his eyes filled with a gentle happiness. Whether he had been fully honest about his relationship with these kids or not, he genuinely cared about them, that much was clear to you. And did it really matter what the truth was since you probably wouldn’t see Axel again after tonight?

“So, what do you think?” Axel asked, dragging you out of your thoughts.

“About what?”

“About the kids. I completely understand if it’s too weird for you.”

You sent him a small smile. “I’m not gonna lie, it is a bit weird, but I think I understand where you’re coming from.”

Axel returned your smile. “That’s great! A big relief, actually.” Fiddling with his phone for a moment, he then spoke up again. “So, while I have this out, can I have your number?”

You just smiled as you grabbed his phone once more, ignoring the voice telling you that your number would never be used.

Axel kept staring at you while you entered your number into his phone. When you tried to hand it back to him, it took you a moment to get him to accept it. Finally, he slipped it back into his pocket with a soft laugh. “Sorry! I got a bit distracted. You look so beautiful in the moonlight.”

 _Barf_ , your inner voice commented. You shushed it.

Axel’s gaze caught yours again as he reached out, grabbing onto your hands once more. He gently ran his thumbs over your bare skin. “Listen, I… dunno ‘bout you, but I’m really feeling a connection here. I know this is sudden - we just met ‘n’ all - but I’m falling pretty hard already.”

Your inner voice instantly dismissed him. _Lies_ , it said, _no one falls in love that quickly_.

You pushed the voice away. _Would you just shut up and let me enjoy the moment?_ you thought. _I_ know _that he most likely isn’t being genuine, and I don’t care right now!_

Axel, completely oblivious to your inner dialogue, inched closer to you. “Would you mind if I kissed you?” he asked.

The voice instantly started arguing, but you ignored it in favor of the tingle of anticipation creeping up your spine. “Please,” you whispered.

He didn’t disappoint. The tingle up your spine grew into goosebumps as his warm lips brushed over yours. Slowly, you pulled your hands from his, wrapping your arms around his neck. He raised one hand, running it over your cheek before it came to a rest at the back of your head as he deepened the kiss. His other hand found its way under your jacket, settling on your lower back and pulling you closer to him.

You had no idea how much time had passed when he pulled away, gently dragging at your lower lip with his teeth before letting go.

Letting out a satisfied sigh, you said, “It’s been a while since I’ve been kissed like that.”

Axel gently rubbed the tip of his nose against yours. “That’s such a shame. You deserve to be kissed like that all the time.”

“Well, you could always kiss me like that again.”

“I could, but…” He slowly kissed a trail from your jaw and down your neck. “... I’d really prefer to do that somewhere more private.” With one final kiss to your neck, he straightened, meeting your eyes again. “I know this is kinda forward, but… d’ya wanna spend the night at my place?”

You looked up at him, your eyes running over his face, his gentle eyes, his soft smile. If it meant that you could keep this date going for just a bit longer before leaving, if it meant he’d keep kissing you, then you didn’t really mind it. And there was no harm in a one-night stand, right?

“Yeah,” you replied. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

⁂

You stretched languidly, slowly blinking the haze of sleep from your eyes. Soft sunlight slipped between the slits in the curtains. Morning. Axel’s chest was pressed against your back, an arm curled around your waist. You could feel every slow, soft breath against the back of your neck. It seemed like he was still asleep. Time to leave before he woke up - it would be less awkward that way.

But when you moved his arm away and tried to get out of bed, Axel reached out for you again, holding you back.

“Where’re ya off to?” His voice was rusty from sleep.

“Home,” you replied, shivering in the cool morning air. “It’s about time for me to get going.”

“Can’t ya stay for a bit longer? I’ll buy you brunch.”

 _Hmm_. Brunch did sound nice. And there wasn’t any harm in staying a bit longer if he wasn’t going to make it awkward. You allowed yourself to be pulled into the warm bed once more, your body sinking back against Axel’s as he pressed a series of soft kisses to the nape of your neck. Yeah, just a bit longer wouldn’t hurt.

‘A bit longer’ turned into weeks. The brunch Axel had promised got extended into homemade dinner and a movie on his couch, which got extended into another walk the next afternoon. Axel seemed to constantly come up with a reason to see you, to hang out, to pull you back into bed. And you didn’t really mind it. You enjoyed his company, you enjoyed having his arms wrapped around you at night, his body pressed against yours to ward off the lingering cold.

Okay, so maybe you had misjudged him. Maybe he hadn’t been looking for a one-night stand but rather a friend with benefits. At least that’s what you assumed when there was no discussion about what, exactly, the two of you were. But you were wrong, as you soon came to find out.

_I want you to meet my friends_ , Axel had said a few days ago. You hadn’t thought anything about it. Meeting the friends of a friend - with or without benefits - just seemed like a natural thing, so of course you said yes.

It was when you found yourself face to face with the people you had only seen in pictures so far that everything started going wrong.

The blonde boy, Roxas, introduced himself with a smile. “It’s nice to finally meet you,” he said. “Axel has been talking about you non-stop for the last month.”

“And I’m sure you’d be the one talkin’ my ear off if you were in my shoes,” Axel replied.

Roxas placed a hand on his own head, then reached it out towards Axel in an attempt to compare their heights. Even standing on his tiptoes, he had trouble reaching the top of Axel’s head.

“Yeah, I’m never gonna be able to fill out your shoes,” he said. “But maybe I could use one as a boat.”

“Or skis,” Xion added, “if it snows next winter.”

“Hey!” Axel gave both of them a soft smack to the back of the head. “Watch those smart mouths of yours or I ain’t gonna buy you two ice cream ever again!”

The group erupted in laughter, though you found yourself unable to fully join. Had Axel really been talking about you _that_ much?

You were abruptly pulled out of your thoughts when Axel slung an arm around your waist, pulling you towards the small cafe where you were supposed to get something hot to drink.

“You’ve been talking about me?” you mumbled, low enough to hopefully keep the conversation private.

“Of course!” he replied, pulling you closer and pressing a kiss to the top of your head. “Who wouldn’t brag when they’re madly in love and dating someone as wonderful as you?”

You stepped backwards, dislodging the arm around your waist. _Oh, no_ , you thought. _No, no, no. Not this_. Blinking hard, you tried to clear your head, tried to keep the ground from swimming before your eyes.

Axel gently grabbed onto your shoulders, keeping you steady. “Are you feeling alright?” he asked. “Do you need to sit down?”

You tilted your head back to look at him. His eyes were filled with worry, with tenderness, with such pure emotion that it made your heart ache. And you realized with a knot in your stomach that he wasn’t the only one to catch feelings. You had just blamed any butterflies in your stomach on pure sexual attraction.

None of this was supposed to happen. He was only supposed to be a nice distraction from your bad mood; a bit of innocent fun. He was supposed to move on of his own volition. He was _not_ supposed to be genuine. You would never have believed that he actually meant all of what he said that night.

Now he was in love with you. And you weren’t entirely sure how to move on from here.

 _You should never have let it get this far_ , the voice in your head commented.

 _You!_ you cried at it. _Why are you always like this? Why did you make it so impossible to believe that he might actually like me? Why did you have to make me doubt him like that??_

 _I was just trying to look out for us_ , the voice responded. _I don’t like it when we’re hurting._

You were pulled back out of your head when Axel gently patted your cheek. “Talk to me,” he said, voice laced with worry, “tell me what’s wrong.”

“I didn’t realize you were in love with me,” you whispered. “I didn’t think we were dating.”

Axel’s face fell. “You… didn’t think…” He just stared silently at you for a moment before he pressed his lips into a thin line. Grabbing onto your wrist, he tugged you into a back alley. He released you but kept his back turned.

“If you didn’t realize we were dating, then what _did_ you think we were?” he asked, voice strained.

You shrugged. “Something like friends with benefits.”

Turning, Axel crossed his arms, thin eyebrows furrowed. “Is that what you’d call these past months? ‘Benefits’?”

“I don’t know what I would call it,” you admitted. “I hadn’t expected you to want more than a one-night stand, to be honest. But then we kept hanging out and, since we never had a talk about going official, I thought that it _was_ just ‘benefits’. I thought that that was what _you_ wanted.”

“You really think that little of me, huh?”

“No, that wasn’t--”

“I meant it,” he snapped, “everything I said. Every! Single! Word! How could you think I didn’t?”

“Because it all happened too quickly,” you shot back, “I thought you were a fake. You said that you were falling in love after knowing me for a couple of hours, for crying out loud!”

“And I acknowledged that it was happening fast! It didn’t mean that I wasn’t being genuine!”

You didn’t know what to reply to that. For once the nagging voice stayed silent. And just when you could have used some advice.

“No, I…” Sighing deeply, you mumbled, “I was just trying to keep myself from getting hurt again.”

You were both silent for a while, the tension between you so thick you could barely breathe. “I’m sorry,” you grit out, fighting to keep your voice even, “I didn’t mean to-- I thought we were on the same page all along.”

“Yeah, well, we clearly weren’t.”

Drawing in a shaky breath, you asked, “Can we just start over? Take it slower this time, all cards on the table from the beginning? Please?”

Axel stayed silent, seemingly lost in the pattern of the brickwork underfoot as he mulled your words over. Then he finally met your eyes again.

“Fine.” He extended a hand to you, along with a soft smile. “The name’s Axel. Got it memorized?”

The sun sets red  
Don’t act surprised   
You’re my Valentine  
 _Got it Memorized?_

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you so much for reading! If you like, you can find me on  
> [Tumblr](https://birinboom.tumblr.com/) for more shenanigans


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